Mustafa Balbay

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Istanbul,
August 7, 2013--A Turkish appellate court should overturn the convictions of
numerous journalists who have been convicted in connection with Ergenekon, a
broad anti-government conspiracy, the Committee to Protect Journalists said
today. The journalists were convicted on flawed penal and anti-terror laws that
conflate news coverage and commentary with terrorism.

Today, hope for peace between the government
of Turkey and Kurdish rebels is closer than ever to becoming reality. A
resolution to the conflict, after more than 30 years, could have ramifications
for Turkey's standing as the world's worst jailer of journalists. According to CPJ research, three-quarters
of the journalists imprisoned in Turkey are from the pro-Kurdish media.

For the past several months, CPJ staff has been researching
pervasive press freedom problems in Turkey, including the criminal prosecution
of journalists, the use of governmental pressure to engender self-censorship,
and the presence of a repressive legal structure. This month, CPJ will release
an in-depth report on Turkey's press freedom crisis. In advance of our report, we
are publishing this illuminating interview with Yavuz Baydar, ombudsman for the
Turkish newspaper Sabah and columnist
for Today's Zaman. The interview was
conducted via email.